New Vinyl, Old Vinyl and Exclaim!

Hey there good people. Another fine selection of recent release vinyl to dig into today. For those of you that missed out on the Brand New “Deja Entendu” Record Store Day release the regular issue is now here, still going to be a tough one to keep in stock I think though. After the long wait the new Bjork is finally available on vinyl. But my pick this week has to be Black Devil Disco Club, if you are a fan of Giorgio Moroder check this one out.

On to the goods!

Björk – Vulnicura

Vulnicura was written, produced and recorded in collaboration with Venezuelan producer Arca and British musician The Haxan Cloak. Of the album’s nine tracks, six are written by Björk with two co-written with Arca and one co-written with Spaces. Six songs are produced by Björk and Arca, one by Björk, Arca and The Haxan Cloak and two by Björk. All string arrangements are by Björk. The album was mixed by The Haxan Cloak, except two songs mixed by The Haxan Cloak and Chris Elms, and mastered by Mandy Parnell. Vulnicura Vulnicura is Björk’s first release since the 2011 album and multimedia project Biophilia.

Black Devil Disco Club – Disco Club

1978 – It thumps – Much like Giorgio Moroder, but without the cheese.. And possibly a little darker/trippier. Often considered the roots of ACID techno!! (Previously re-issued on Aphex Twin’s ‘Reflex’ label, Long out of print!!) Oh..and the cover has a topless funky-cartoon-demon-lady on it! Totally killer! Disco Club is a groundbreaking work of experimental disco created by Fèvre and producer Jacky Giordano on the outskirts of Paris in 1978. Armed with fictional personae “Junior Claristidge” and “Joachim Sherylee” respectively, their collaboration as Black Devil expressed a brazen contempt for the “big shot American studio heads” who represented the myth that “good music could only be made by Anglo-Saxons.” As such the EP and its appellation have been shrouded in mystery and the spirit of disobedience for decades. The Aphex Twin-backed Rephlex label notably revamped a handful of Disco Club tracks in 2004, however this is the first reappearance of the full, six track sequence.

Brand New – Deja Entendu

While it wouldn’t be entirely out of line to align Brand New’s second album DEJA ENTENDU with contemporaneous offerings by such West Coast emo-punk types as Rufio, et al, it would be a bit of a mental shortcut. The fact is that while DEJA ENTENDU has no shortage of blaring, punky guitar riffs, battleship-heavy drum pounding, and harried, sore-throat vocals, there’s another level to the band’s sound. When they’re not shouting and thrashing, Brand New are eminently capable of hushed, melodic vocals, atmospheric guitar textures, and relatively complex song structures. They’ve got their dynamic shifts down too, as they easily maneuver back and forth between the two extremes throughout the album.

Various – Sherwood At The Controls Vol. 1

A collection of tracks documenting the work of the UK record producer and founder of the dub label On-U Sound. Over his 30 year career, Adrian Sherwood has produced and collaborated with the likes of Lee Scratch Perry, Little Annie, Depeche Mode, Asian Dub Foundation, Sinéad O’Connor, Einstürzende Neubauten and Pinch. Following on from the early 2015 release – his collaboration with Pinch – Late Night Endless, Sherwood At The Controls Volume 1: 1979-1984 brings together some of Sherwood’s early works as producer and remixer. Highlights include The Fall’s ‘Middle Mass’, Prince Far I’s ‘Nuclear Weapon’ and African Head Charge’s ‘In A Trap’.

Original Cast Recording – Hedwig And The Angry Inch – Record Store Day 2015 release